Pull-button-controlling switch.



C. H. HILL.

PULL BUTTON GONTROLLING SWITCH.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 17, 1906.

1li-1u i will lun/ENTER b H HJC/t5.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES H. HILL, F SCHELTECTADY, NEW YOBAKfASSI-GNOR TO GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK. l

PULL-BUTTON-CONTROLLING SWITCH.

Specicaton of Letters Patent.

` Patented May 19,- 1914.

Application med May 17,1906. lserial No'. 317,305.

To ali/whom t may concern: Bet it known that I, CHARLES H; HILL, a citizen of the United States, residing `at fSchenectady, county of Schenectady, State 'of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pull-Button-Con- 'trolling Switches, of which the following is a specication.

This invention relates in general to electric switchesactuated by means of solenoids onsimilar devices and controlled' from a ypoint remote from the switch, and more par'- Vticularly to controlling means for switches lof the type above indicated. Many control-- rling devices or'this purpose at present inl use are in-the form of switchesl which Etake up considerable rooml on the switchboard, have `switch-blades projecting therefrom, and contacts exposed onthe front ofthe board in such position that objects may come intoengagement withthe contacts by accident, thereby causing the main switch to be operated at unexpected times.

lt has been proposed to place the contacts in recesses, but these recesses form lodging placesrfor small objects of various kinds and are there? Afore objectionable.

Theobjects of the presentinvention are to provide a controllingv device which shall take up but little room on the switchboard andshall have only knobs or similar parts projecting from the vboard when not in use and which may be made similar in appearance to'the4 other switchescommonly tound onswitchboards used with this type of device.

Another object is to provide an interlock von the control device so as to .prevent more than one control circuit being closed at any time; a further object is to-indicate which control circuit was last closed by the operator; Aand another object is to improve, in

general, the construction and operation ot 'controlfcircuits :torA the main switch.

- the controller.

A p anel 1 of slate or other insulating mal terial 1s provided upon which the controlling device is mounted. Holes are bored through this panel in which tubes 2 are secured. A. hole 3 is made through the panel between theholes in which thel tubes 2 are mounted. An

escutcheon 4 is mounted upon the front of fthe'board and covers the ends of the tubes 2 and the hole 3. A block 5, preferably of insulating material, is mounted on the back-ot the board and covers the other ends of the tubes 2 and the hole 3. The escutcheon and the block 5 are heldin position by means of bolts 6 which extend through the panel and engage both the escutcheon and the block;

Aand the tubes 2 are countersunk both in the escutcheonand in the block. Controllers are .mounted inthe tubes 2, each controller '-having a stem` with two portions 7: and 8 of different diameters; these portions being connected by a cone'surface 9. On the portion 8 ofthe controller stem, a collar 10 is mounted. This collarengages one end of a spring 11 surrounding the stem 8, the other end of which bears against the escutcheon 4a; This spring tends to hold the controller in the position' shown in Fig. 1. A knob 12 is 4mounted on-the end-of the stem 8 and forms a means by'x whichfthe'operator vmay move This knob is normally' held against'the escutcheon bythe force exerted by the spring 11. On the other end ofthe controller, on the-portion 7 of the stem, bridgingv contactsv 13 and 14 are mounted.. Fixed contacts 15 are secured to the block 5 in such position that wheiifthe controller is moved Vagainst the'tension oit the spring 11, the bridging contacts 13 and 14' may y be brought into engagement with the fixed con- -tacts 15, thereby completing a circuit Jfrom vone of said fixed contacts to the other.

lt is evident that with the structure above described, thev only operativel movement of the controller stem is a movement away I from the panel, since the knob on thefend ot vthe controller-stem is normally in engagement with the ApanelfLV thereby preventing movement of the controller-stem except by pulling upon the knob. llt is apparentthat any kind of a stop could be substituted forA the panel; With a structure of the kind described, the normal mode of operation is to Ipull upon the controller knob, thereby closing the controller "circuit, after which the lmob is released, and the controller-stem re#r E-110 turns to normal position. Accidental opera-I ing inclined ends and a hole 17 in the middle thereof. lt is necessary that the length of the interlock be greater than the distance between projections on the controller stems when the stems are in operative position, and therefore the length of this block is greater than the distance between the portions 7 of the controller stems. As shown in Fig. 1, the length of the block is approximately the dist-ance between the surface of the portion 7 of one. controller stem and the surface of the portion 8 of the 'other stem. lhe ends of the interlock project into openings in the block 5 in line with the axis of the tubes 2. 'lhe portions 7 of the controller stems slide in these openings and the openings are approximately of the same size as the portions 7 of the stem. As a result of this arrangement it is impossible to bring both contacts 13 and 14 into engagement with contacts 15 at the same time. The interlock is held in position in the groove in the block 5 by means of a supporting-plate 18 which is held in position by the bolts 6.

A base-plate 19 'is counter-sunk in vthe block 5 and is held in position between the ,block and the panel 1, by means of pins 20 which engage holes in -the block 5. The base-plate 19 has a hole in the middle thereof corresponding withl the hole 22 in the block 5. A pivot 21 is mounted in the baseplate 19 transverse to the hole 22. rllhe baseplate also carries pillars 23 rmly attached thereto at one end and carrying at the other end, spring-blades 24, which, as shown in ".Fig-4, have projections 25 pointing-toward 'each otherl so that the space between the projections is considerably less than the space between the remaining portions of the spring-blades. An indicator 26, preferably circular in cross-section, is mounted on the ivot 21 and has one end loosely fitting in the hole 17 of the-interlock/16, while the other end carries an indicator plate 27 which moves in front of a window 28 in the escutcheon ll.. The indicator plate is preferably divided into two parts, one of which may be of one color and the other of another, or the indicator plate may carry words or letters corresponding to the position of the indicator.

The relation in which this controlling device is used is shown in Fig. 6, in which a circuit-breaker is represented diagrammatinoname cally. This circuit-breaker has a contact 29, actuated by a toggle 30, which is straightened for the purpose of bringing the contact 29 into engagement with Xed contacts by operating means, reterably consisting of an actuating solenoi 31, the core of which engages the toggle 30 and straightens it when the solenoid is energized. A catch 32in the form of a bell-crank lever engages'the end of one of the links of the toggle tohold the -circuit-breaker closed. A trip-coil 33 is provided, the core of which, when the coil is energized, strikes one arm 'of `the bellcrank 32 and moves it so as to permit the circuit-breaker to open. 'lhe solenoid 31 and the coil 33 are energized from` a control or supply circuit having leads 34C and 35. As shown in Fig. 6, the lead 35 of the' supply circuit is connected to one -end of the coil 33, the other end of said coil being connected by means of a lead 36 to a contact 15 of the controlling switch. The lead 35 is also connected to one end of the winding of the solenoid 31, the other end of which is connected by means of the lead 37 yto another contact 15 of the controlling device. rlhe other lead 34 of the supply circuit is also connected to contacts onthe controlling device as shown in Fig. 6.

With a controlling arrangement of the type above described, it is desirable to pro.- vide means whereby only one controllerstem at a time may be operated. lt is evident that if both the opening and the closing solenoids were energized the switch would stay closed only so long as the 'operator held the circuit closed through the closing solenoid. To operate the switch properly under such circumstances would require care and attention on the part of the operator, as

the trip-coil before opening the circuit of the closing coil. ASuch a taX on the attention of the operator is undesirable, especially where this device controls switches used in synchronizing'.v Under such circumstances, theoperator must watch the synchronizer, and the controlling switch for closing the main switch should be of the type requiring a minimum of attention and care on the part of the operator. lVhen the switches are provided with an interlock, as above described, there is no possibility of energizing both solenoids at the same time, so that all that the operator has to do is to pullone controller knob and then release it. f

rl`he operation of the device is as follows: lf it be assumed that thc circuit-breaker is closed and the operator desires to open it, the bridging contact,l 13 is brought into engagement with the contacts 15, closing a circoil 33. AsA a resul-t, the trip-coil 33 is energized, the core rises, and striking the catch 32 releases the toggle 30 and permits the circuit through the lead 34, lead 36, and tripcuit-breaker to open under the action of a spring or gravity. The operator then releases the knob 12, thereby permitting the controller to assume its normal position with the bridging contact 13 out of engagement with the contact 15. When the operator .noves the controller, however, for the purpose of bringing the bridging contact 18 into engagement with the fixed contacts 15, the cone surface 9 engages the beveled end of the interlock 16 and moves the interlock to one side; but the return of the controller to its normal position does not affect the interlock, which remains in the position to which it was moved in the irst place. As a result, the parts are left in the position shown diagrammatically in Fig. 6. The circuitbreaker is open and the interlock has been moved, thereby moving the indicator to a position which shows the attendant that the last movement of the controlling device was for the purpose of opening the circuitbreaker. The indicator tends to assume one cxtreme position or the other since the projections 25 on the spring-blades 24 are so placed that they tend to throw the indicator from the middle position. It is therefore impossible to leave the indicator and the interlock in a neutral position. If now the attendant desires to close' the circuitbreaker, the bridging contact 14 is brought into engagement with. the fixed contacts 15, this movement shifting the interlock and thereby the indicator to a position which shows that the last movement of the controlling device was for the purpose of closing the circuit-breaker. When the bridging contact 14 is in engagement with the fixed contacts 15, the circuit is completed from the lead 34, through the bridging contact 14, lead 37 and winding of the solenoid 31. As a result, the solenoid is 'energized and the core is moved to straighten out the toggle 30, thereby closing the circuit-breaker which is locked in the closed position by means of the catch 3f?.4

The controller is released and the bridging fcontact 14 moves out ofengagement with the fixed contacts 15, but the interlock and the indicator remain in position to which they were last moved, showing the attendant that the circuit-breaker is closed.

Obviously, many changes may be made in the form of my invention, and I therefore do not wish to be limited to the exact form shown, but intend to cover by the terms of the annexed claims all changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of my invention. i

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is,--

1. In a circuit-controlling device, the com bination with a plurality of switches, of interloeking means for said sw/itches, a pivoted lever having one end engaging said interlock and the other end carrying an indicator, and yielding means engaging said lever to move it from intermediate position.

2. The combination with a support and a plurality of switches mounted upon said support biased to normal inoperative position, operating handles for said switches, means for moving said switches into operative position whenl said handles are pulled away from said support toward the operator, of an indicator constructed to remain in the position in which itis set, and means whereby said' indicator is set in response to the movement of any of said switches out of normal position by movement of its operating handle away from said support and is left unaiected by the return of said switch to normal position.

3. The combination with a support and two switches mounted on said support, each switch having contacts behind said support,

operating knobs in front, and means for re-l siliently holding said switches open with said knobs immovable toward said support, of an indicator for said switches, and actuating means whereby said indicator is actuated in response to the closing of either of said switches by movement of its'operating knob away from said support and is unaffected by return of said switches to open position. i y i 4. The combination with a support and two switches secured to said support side by side, each switch comprising an operating knob in front of said support, a stem eX- tending through said support, contacts behind said support, and a spring for holding said' knob against said support when the switch is in normal position, of an indicator constructed to remain in the position in which it is set, and projections on` said stems for setting said indicator in response to movement of either ofsaid switches out of normal position and leaving said indicator set until the'other switch is moved out of normal position.

5. The combination with two switches biased to normal position, of a movable interlock between said switches, actuating means controlled by said switches to move said interlock in response to movement of either switch out of normal position and' to leave said interlock unaffected by the return of said switch to normal position, and an indicator actuated` by said interlock.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 16th day of May, 1906.

CHARLES H. HILL. Witnesses:

BENJAMIN B. HULL, HELENORFORD. 

